


Bug in the System

by imma_redshirt



Category: Jumanji (1995), Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (Movies)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M, Other Relationships to Be Added - Freeform, Post Jumanji The Next Level
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-12
Updated: 2020-01-12
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:54:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22223668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imma_redshirt/pseuds/imma_redshirt
Summary: A glitch in the game brings Jumanji to the town of Brantford.And when old enemies resurface, Spencer, Fridge, Martha, and Bethany are going to need all the help they can get, because this time, they don't have lives to spare.
Relationships: Alan Parrish/Sarah Whittle, Spencer Gilpin/Martha Kaply
Comments: 9
Kudos: 80





	Bug in the System

**Author's Note:**

> Just watched The Next Level and just had to type something out cause I am hyped for another movie. More of a fun project than anything else, thought someone else might get a kick out of it.
> 
> So chapter one is just an introductory thing, and picks up right off where the credits scene ends. Upcoming chapters will be from the point of view of singular characters.

In the quiet city of Brantford, New Hampshire, four teenagers stood in silent shock at the entrance to the city’s moderately popular 24 hour diner, _Nora’s._

Inside the diner, customers were enjoying warm meals at the end of a long weekend. One of the diner’s most popular plates, a cheeseburger slathered with a spicy secret sauce and accompanied by seasoned steak fries and a tall chocolate milkshake, was being delivered to Eddie Gilpin at table six. 

Lounging as best he could with an aching hip, Eddie raised his eyebrows when the plate was set in front of him by a smiling waitress. He narrowed his eyes at the food on his plate, adjusted his bifocals, reached over to the burger with one finger, and jabbed at the sauce spilling down one of the toasted buns.

He tasted it, nodded, and shrugged. “That’s not bad. I don’t know how well that’ll go with cheese, but I guess we’ll just have to see, eh?”

The waitress set down a chocolate milkshake next to the plate. “You let us know, Mr. Gilpin. Nora said she’d love to hear your opinion when you’re done.”

“Yeah, I’ll let her know,” Eddie said, dipping one steak fry into the milkshake. “Hey, why don’t you bring me one more? For my grandson, Spencer. That kid doesn’t eat enough, he could do with another burger. He was sitting over there at that table with his friends--hey, Spencer! Come try this burger!”

Eddie turned when his grandson didn’t answer, and saw that the table the group of friends had taken was empty. He turned further, wincing at a pang in his hip, and saw the youngsters standing at the open door of the restaurant with their backs to him.

“Ah, he’s saying bye to his pals,” Eddie said. He turned back to the waitress and jabbed a thumb over his shoulder at the kids by the door. “Those’re good kids. Hey, on second thought, bring me some of these for all of ‘em, all on me, huh?”

“You got it Mr. Gilpin,” the waitress said, and with one curious look at the frozen teenagers, left to put the order in.

“Hey, Spencer!” Eddie called again over his shoulder. “Don’t let your friends leave yet, I’m orderin’ ‘em some burgers! You guys have to try this sauce, betcha Jumanji’s never tasted anythin’ like this--”

As Eddie went to work on the burger--allowing a begrudging nod when he finally tasted the sauce with the rest of the burger’s ensemble--his grandson, standing stock still at the diner’s entrance with his mouth agape and eyes wide, held one finger up and said, quite helplessly, “Uhhhh, guys, did you all see--”

“A herd of ostriches trampeding down the sidewalk?” Martha offered, just as helplessly and just as frozen.

“Yeah,” Spencer said faintly.

Standing still next to Spencer, Fridge had one hand on his forehead and he was staring down the street. There, right under the blinking yellow light at the nearby intersection, a cloud of dust was just settling where the herd of flightless birds had disappeared around the corner of 5th Street. “Oh my _God,_ holy--those were the same ostriches from the Dunes!”

“Hold on,” Bethany said. She slid a hand from her mouth where she’d used her palm to stifle a startled scream and made a sharp gesture to silence the others. “You guys, this cannot be happening. No. We just left that crazy place, those things can _not_ have followed us through.”

“She’s right,” Martha said. She sounded as if she was trying to keep herself from freaking out but was only just succeeding. “I mean, we weren’t even in the Dunes when we left the game. We had to be at least three levels away from that area.”

“Yeah?” Fridge countered. “And how do you guys explain all those freaking birds that just ran past us?”

“Bad day at the zoo?” Martha offered weakly.

“Maybe it was a flashback,” Spencer said. Fridge gave him an incredulous look. “What? It’s possible!”

“A flashback,” Fridge said. “That we all saw. At the same time.”

“Well, I mean--”

“Ex _cuse_ me!” A voice snapped from behind the group, and the four teens jumped with yelps of varying volumes. They twisted around to see a woman behind them, holding a little girl’s hand, tapping her foot impatiently and glaring at them. “You know you’re blocking the exit?”

Every single customer was staring at them. Except for Grandpa Eddie, who was dipping three fries into a half-empty glass of chocolate milkshake. 

The four teens exchanged startled glances before Spencer looked at the impatient woman and asked hesitantly, “I’m sorry, but did you see those birds?”

The woman raised an eyebrow. “Birds?”

“Yeah,” Bethany said. “Like, a whole bunch of ostriches just ran by the door. Did you see them?”

She didn’t answer. Instead, she looked each one of them in the face, frowning, as if trying to decide whether or not they were playing some prank on her. “Is this some kind of Youtube channel or something, because I am not giving any permission to--”

“I saw them!” The little girl said. “Mommy! I saw them!”

The woman scoffed and began to scoot between the teens to the exit. “Sweetheart, you did not see any birds.”

“Yes I did! You were in the restroom and a buncha big birds started running by the windows!”

“Did anyone else see them?” Fridge directed to the rest of the customers as the woman and her daughter left. He gestured at the window with one hand. “C’mon, a herd of ostriches running by and _noone_ was looking out the window?”

“You sayin’ something, Anthony?” Eddie said over his shoulder. “Hey, you and Spencer and your friends come and sit and try these burgers. They’re pretty good! Why didn’t anyone ever tell me ‘bout this before?”

“I’m sorry,” a waitress said to the bewildered and panicking teens as the other customers gradually went back to their meals. “I’m going to have to ask you to either have a seat or leave. You’re starting to worry some of our customers.”

“Seriously?” Bethany asked, only a little frantic as the waitress eyed her warily. “ _We’re_ worrying them, but they weren’t even a little freaked out by an entire herd of ostriches literally stampeding down the street?”

“Guys,” Spencer said. “Let’s just sit with Grandpa Eddie and we’ll--we’ll figure this out, okay? But let’s just sit first, because if we don’t, I _may_ just faint right here in the doorway.”

“Dude,” Fridge said, rubbing a hand down his face. “How are we supposed to just sit when that freakin’ herd of birds is running around? You know what those things did to the dune buggy we were driving?”

“I know, I went through the Dunes too,” Spencer said. “By myself, I may add.”

“Yeah, by _choice_.”

“Look,” the waitress huffed, crossing her arms. “I said you guys need to leave or sit down, or--”

A scream cut her off.

The diner, which had been filled with a dull din of subdued conversation, went silent. Spencer exchanged wide-eyed glances with the others before they turned away from the startled waitress and looked out the door once again.

The street was empty. Even the cloud of dust had completely settled. The flashing yellow light at the intersection continued to flash at short intervals, swinging gently in the wind, bright against the fading daylight.

Until it began to sway wildly in its wire, against the wind, and the ground beneath the diner shook.

“Oh, God,” Bethany breathed, just as someone screamed again. 

Around the corner at the end of the block, the woman who had left with her daughter sprinted into sight and rushed down the sidewalk towards the open diner door. Her eyes were wide and her face pale, and her daughter was looking over her shoulder and screaming, “I told you Mommy, I _told_ you!”

“What’s going on?” Someone asked behind the group, and another customer demanded, “Who’s screaming? Is someone hurt?”

“ _Now_ you’re listening?” Fridge snapped, just as Martha gestured wildly at the running woman and yelled, “Hurry, hurry!”

At that moment, behind the woman, an ostrich rounded the corner. It blinked in the fading daylight, twisting its head to eye the group of teens cheering the running woman on, then fluffed it’s wings and gave chase.

Behind it, its herd followed without pause.

The sound of the stampede was like thunder, drowning out the woman’s scream as she skidded into the open doorway and shielded her daughter behind her back. The customers who had gathered at the window stumbled back, confused, and the teens immediately shut the glass doors and backed away.

Within moments, ostriches were crowding the street and sidewalk outside, kicking up dust in the street and bowing long necks to stare through the glass at the screaming humans inside.

“What the _hell?_ ” Someone yelled, and someone else stammered, “Are--are those _ostriches?_ ”

“They were chasing us,” the woman who had run said around a gasp. She was holding her daughter tight and staring out the window at the birds who were crowded restlessly against the glass. “They chased me from my car. There’s so many. Why are there so many--”

Someone yelled “call the cops!” and the diner broke out into a cascade of bewildered, arguing voices.

“No, call Animal Control for Christ’s sake--”

“How is Animal Control going to control _that?_ ”

“Are ostriches dangerous? Maybe we can just shoo them away?”

“You wanna walk out into that, be my guest, lady.”

Amidst the sudden chaos, the four teens who had first seen the herd of flightless birds were staring silently at the familiar sight outside. They gathered close together, the proximity offering just enough comfort to keep them from falling into complete panic.

“No no no no,” Martha breathed, eyeing the lead ostrich who had stopped right before the glass doors. “This is insane. They--they followed us through. I can’t believe this.”

“This isn’t _fair_ ,” Fridge said. “We beat the game! Why is this happening?”

“Had to be a glitch or something,” Spencer said. “That’s the only explanation. The game was already messing up, maybe this is some sort of hiccup in the system or--or, I don’t know--”

“A glitch, okay,” Bethany said in that tone that meant she was keeping herself calm by sheer will. “So, we fix it, right? We go back to your house, mess with the circuits or whatever, and fix this. Right? We can do that?”

“I don’t know,” Spencer said. “I mean it’s just a _theory.”_

“Yeah, well, that’s the best we got so far,” Fridge said. “But how the hell are we supposed to get through all this? Is there a back door?”

“They’ll know,” Martha said. The others glanced at her. With a gulp, she pointed at the ostrich who held her gaze, and said in a whisper as if the bird could hear her every word, “They’re all staring at us. _Directly at us.”_

Slowly, the others looked at the herd. Sure enough, though the birds were craning their necks up and down and ruffling their feathers, heads twitching side to side, they all seemed to be focused on the four teenagers huddled together. Without a word, the teens took a few slow steps back into the arguing crowd. 

Amidst the teeming mass of feathers and talons, the herd lowered their narrow heads as one to fixate on their targets.

“Ohmygod,” Bethany said through clenched teeth, “Is anyone else getting the chills?”

“Hey, what’s going on?” Grandpa Eddie said at her elbow, startling the friends as he looked up from his seat. The teens had backed up right into his table. He turned in his seat to watch the other customers in bewilderment. “Why’s everyone so loud? They haven’t even brought out the burger for you guys yet, how long has it been? As soon as I’m manager again, service is going to change, I’ll tell you that right now--hey, Nora!” He gestured at Nora Shepherd, who was being ushered out of her back office by a stammering waitress. “I know you’re all busy, but service is kinda slow out here--”

“Oh my _God_ ” Nora gasped, slapping a hand over her mouth and staring at the mass of birds outside her diner. “What is this? What--what--is this a prank? What in the world--?”

“I’m calling the cops,” someone said, and immediately afterwards someone else announced, “Well, _I’m_ on the phone with Animal Control, and they’re saying they’re busy because apparently there are animals everywhere, which is ridiculous, this has to be some kind of joke.”

“I need to call my brother,” Nora gasped, “Jenna, keep an eye on those birds, don’t let any of them in, oh my _God_ \--”

Hand still over her mouth, Nora pulled her cell from her pocket as the waitress by her side seemed panicked with the sudden responsibility of keeping a herd of giant birds out of a tiny diner. 

At Nora’s words, Spencer slapped a hand to his forehead and gasped, and Grandpa Eddie turned in his seat to look at what was causing the fuss that had interrupted the service at the diner.

“Hey, I know those birds,” Grandpa Eddie said around a mouthful of burger, pointing one angry finger at the birds who seemed to now include him in their intense scrutiny. “I beat those birds in that desert. Spencer, does this have something to do with that Jumanji thing we just finished dealing with? This another one of your video games?”

Spencer didn’t answer. He looked frozen in shock, pale, staring at the herd but seeing nothing. The others were looking at him, worry growing, and Fridge settled a hand on his shoulder to shake him lightly.

“Hey, Spence, talk to us, man. What’s wrong?”

“Mom,” Spencer gasped. He dug into his coat pocket for his cell and with a trembling finger speed dialed his mother’s number. “These things came out of the game. The game was at home. Mom was at home. What if--what if--”

The line connected and a ring tone was barely audible to the others, who had gone silent in shock at the realization that Spencer’s house might be overrun with Jumanji wildlife, and his unsuspecting mother in danger from it all.

And if the ostriches hadn’t come through alone, the rest of their families might be in danger as well.

But they waited, as if the ring tone was a spell over them, holding their attention. Spencer licked his dry lips and buried a trembling hand in his hair.

The phone rang twice. Outside, the birds continued to swarm along the street, and the ones closest to the window seemed to glare directly at Spencer when the third ring cut off and someone on the other end picked up.

“Mom,” Spencer said in a rush, “Are you okay? Is everything alright? Did anything happen? Like, birds, or--or--Mom, please, are you--”

“ _Well,_ ” answered a deep, grating voice. Spencer’s breath caught in his throat. He gulped, hand griping the phone, as a voice that was definitely not his mother continued in a slow, measured tone, “ _Dr. Bravestone. I’ve been waiting for the moment to speak to you again.”_

“I know that voice,” Fridge said. His hands were fists at his side, and he met Martha and Bethany’s gazes with terror that he saw mirrored back at him. “Why is that voice _here_. We got rid of him.”

“We literally saw him turn into bugs and rats,” Bethany said in a frightened whisper. She was gripping Martha’s hand. “This is crazy you guys, this cannot be happening.”

“This isn’t Dr. Bravestone,” Spencer said into the phone, in as steady a voice as he could manage. He paused and clenched his jaw. With his other hand, he’d dug his inhaler from his pocket and was fiddling with it as if he wanted nothing more than to take a deep breath, but the silence on the other end of the line held his attention, and he pressed on with bravery that he didn’t feel. “And this isn’t Jumanji, Van Pelt. This isn’t a _game._ My name is Spencer Gilpin, and you’re using _my mom’s phone._ Look, please, just tell me where she is, ok? Just--”

_CRACK_

Spencer gasped. Through the suddenly cracked glass, the lead ostrich stared at him and again rammed its beak at the window. 

_CRACK_

“Oh no,” Martha gasped, as another _crack_ sounded and the customers around them began to raise their voices in shock. “Oh, _no_ \--”

“ _You’d be surprised,_ ” Van Pelt’s low voice answered, as the crack spread and the ostrich reared its head back again. “ _To know how far Jumanji can reach._ ”

The line went dead, and the window shattered.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
